Victorville man sentenced to life in prison for AM/PM murder

SAN BERNARDINO, Calif.– A Victorville man who shot and killed a convenience store employee in 2013 was sentenced to life in prison Friday.

Victorville Superior Court Judge Colin Bilash sentenced 38-year-old Eric Robbins to life in prison without the possibility of parole for the murder of store clerk Daniel Olivera, 26, of Hesperia.

In April, a Victorville jury found Robbins guilty of first degree murder and found true the special circumstance of lying in wait and the special allegation of discharge of a firearm causing death. The jury also found him guilty of the attempted murder of the security guard.

According to Deputy District Attorney Alberto Juan, who prosecuted the case, Robbins pulled up to the convenience store in a white pickup truck on Aug. 11, 2013 and attempted to enter the store.

“The defendant was denied entry by a security guard because the store had just temporarily closed to conduct a count of the cash drawer,” said Deputy DA Juan. “After the confrontation, the defendant walked back to his pickup truck and drove off.”

Forty minutes later, while Olivera was standing outside talking to the security guard, the defendant laid prone in a dirt lot 140 yards away and shot Olivera in the chest with a .308 rifle.

At the time of the shooting, no witness saw any suspect, gun, or fleeing vehicle.

According to Deputy DA Juan, Olivera died within minutes and left behind a fiancé and four children.

"It was only through the diligence of the San Bernardino County Sheriff's Department Homicide Team and the help of the public in identifying the defendant in a surveillance video released to the press that Daniel Olivera's killer was able to be identified and held accountable for his actions," said Deputy DA Juan.

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It is the mission of the San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office to represent the interests of the people in the criminal justice system, as mandated by California State law. The San Bernardino County District Attorney's Office serves the residents of San Bernardino County by: seeking the truth, protecting the innocent; holding the guilty accountable; preserving the dignity of victims and their families; and, ensuring that justice is done while always maintaining the highest ethical standards.